As a Video Room moderator, there's more to your role than simply getting rid of the occasional troll. It's your job to foster discussion when the crickets start chirping and ensure that everyone gets a turn to speak. These instructions offer some basic tips on how to be an effective moderator — and of course we'll show you how to get rid of those trolls, too. 👢
Watch this video, or keep reading to learn how to moderate a Video Room!
While anyone can join Video Rooms on a computer or a mobile device, moderation features are only available when you join a Video Room on the Web App with a computer. You can open the Web App in a browser on your mobile device, though we recommend testing beforehand to make sure moderation features work as expected.
If you're not sure how to access the Web App, or you can't log in, contact the event organizer.
Finding your room(s)
Identifying which rooms you're moderating is easy! Simply examine the list of rooms for any that have the 'Moderated by you' tag in the top right corner.
Click the Join button, check your mic and video settings, then click Join again to enter the room. If you have problems with your camera or mic, consult our Video Room troubleshooting guide.
That's it! You're ready to start moderating.
Moderation tips
⏲️ Practice and be early
Practice may not always make perfect, though it can help you to feel more comfortable. If you're giving a presentation, running an activity, or delivering a set of instructions, rehearse what you'll say at least once or twice before you join the room. If there are Video Rooms available before yours, join one to observe how it goes. 🧠
Don't let all that practice make you late! You should always be the first person in the room to greet everyone who joins. If you're sitting there alone for several minutes, that's a great time for some last-minute practice. 😉
👋 Start with a warm welcome
Smile! Try to greet each person who enters the room as soon as possible without interrupting others. As icebreaker questions, ask where they're from, what they're enjoying about the event, or what they were doing most recently.
Being enthusiastic can help people feel welcome and energized, too. Let people know that you're happy they've joined!
✔️ Keep it simple
Sometimes less really is more. If you're guiding attendees through an activity, try to use only digital props so they don't have to hunt around for items like pens or paper.
If the conversation starts to lull, don't feel like you have to fill the quiet spaces. 🦗 Ask someone by name to share what their favorite session or speaker so far has been or which planet they'd most like to visit! Prompt a conversation, then step back and give people room to talk. Repeat as needed.
How to remove people and delete chats
Removing someone from a video room should be a last resort. If someone is being disrespectful, try gently guiding the conversation away from a controversial topic, or suggest they can continue the discussion later via private chat.
If it's clear that the person won't back down and they're monopolizing the conversation, it's probably time to remove them from the room. Here's how:
Hover your mouse over the video panel for the person you want to remove, and click the Remove button that appears in the bottom right corner of the panel.
In the window that appears, choose how long the participant should be banned. If necessary, check the box to delete their chats, too.
When you're ready, click Remove.
After you click 'Remove', the person is immediately removed from the room, and a message notifying them that the moderator removed them appears.
Now you know how to be an awesome Video Room moderator! To achieve true expertise, we suggest you study our tips and troubleshooting for audio and video in Video Rooms, too.
Questions? Chat with us or email support@socio.events.